Domination in America, Starting from being a Boxing Champion

"Feeling any better?"

Outside the Metropolitan Theater, Link asked the silent Selena, who had become a quiet fool ever since meeting MJ, seldom speaking.

Selena took his hand, batting her big eyes: "It feels weird. It wasn't as amazing as I imagined, but he's a really nice person... I don't know how to describe it."

Link chuckled softly, "It's normal. Idols are like the moon; they look beautiful from afar, but once you get close, you can see their more real side. That doesn't stop them from being huge."

Selena nodded, raising her chin and looking up at him with her sparkling eyes, "Will you become a big star like MJ one day?"

Link thought about it and shook his head, "I'll be a star, but not like MJ. He's very famous, in a league of his own across ages, but he lived too restrictedly. Even going out on dates, he would get pointed at, which is too dull for me.

In comparison, I'd prefer to be a celebrity like Bill Gates. Everybody in the world knows his name, but he doesn't have to take on too much pressure because of it, leading a more leisurely life."

"So, your goal is to become a billionaire?"

"Yes!"

Link said with a light laugh.

"Then I want to be a billionaire in the future too."

Selena said, clenching her tiny fist.

"You can do it."

Link said with a smile, remembering that Selena would later switch to the music field, making a few billion dollars in net worth from hit albums and personal investments.

But thinking about the little girl beside him also becoming a billionaire in the future, he felt that he should work even harder and not be outdone by them.

"Link!"

Just as he was about to get Selena into the car, a shout came from behind. Kanye, accompanied by Lil Wayne, 50 Cent, and over a dozen black men, walked up to him, menacingly, like a scene out of Gangs of New York.

Link patted Selena's shoulder and turned to ask Kanye, "Is there a problem?"

"Link, we won't have conflicts with you anymore, but you can't provoke us on purpose either. Don't mention me in the media; I hate it when people stir up hype using my name," Kanye said, removing his sunglasses to reveal his solemn black face.

His entourage, with their arms folded and chins lifted high, had an air of arrogance.

Seeing his sunglasses off, Kanye somewhat resembled Wade from the Miami Heat, and Link said with a smile, "We'll agree on that. But I have to give you a heads up. I recently wrote a couple of rap songs that I plan to work on with Eminem. I hope you won't see this as provocation."

"You're doing rap music?"

Kanye's somber face showed a hint of surprise.

"Hahahaha!"

"This guy says he's going to rap?"

"It's hilarious; this dude has the guts to talk about rapping in front of us,"

The others in the group burst into laughter, some clutching their stomachs and unable to stop.

Link smiled, unfazed. Rap music was a black man's turf, and anyone of a different color was considered a rap idiot—except for Eminem. Like Eminem, geniuses were rare, and as a newcomer pop singer daring to mention this in front of several top rap artists, it did sound like a joke.

He looked at Kanye and asked, "Teaming up with Eminem or other rappers shouldn't be considered provocation, right?"

Kanye gave him a curious look, waved his hand, "Do whatever you want!"

Then he led his group into a white stretch Lincoln.

As they got in, someone mentioned, 'That kid says he's going to rap.'

Laughter erupted in the car, with people slapping the seats and stomping their feet.

Even the usually grim-faced Kanye couldn't help but flash a broad smile.

Link shrugged his shoulders, feeling he had the makings of a stand-up comedian. It wasn't easy to make people suffering from depression laugh, but he could.

"Link, are you really going to try rap?"

Selena asked.

"Of course, we have to try crossing into different fields while we're young to find out just how much potential we have."

"Go for it! I support you!"

Selena cheered, waving her little fist.

Link smiled softly, started the car, and left the Lincoln Center.

——

After arriving at Link Music, Link reached out through his company to Eminem's music studio, extending an invitation to collaborate.

At the same time, he handed over an unfinished score of "Lighters" for Eminem to take a look.

The rap lyrics were generally positive and the tune had a great rhythm, which made it one of Link's favorite classic rap songs.

Link believed that Eminem would be interested in the score once he saw it.

Knock knock knock!

"Come in!"

Link set down his pen and rubbed his forehead.

A couple of days ago, Ivanka came looking for trouble, asking him to write a few more songs to add to the deluxe edition of the album.

After calling Graham, Graham thought that releasing a deluxe edition could boost sales, which was a good promotional tactic.

He had no choice but to slap his head and figure out how to squeeze out a few more songs.

Ms. Anna walked in wearing a blue-gray suit, holding several folders in her arms, as if she had come to assign tasks as well.

"Boss, here's the work schedule for this week."

Anna placed a folder on the table.

Link looked at the folder, feeling like it was a Pandora's box that would bring endless trouble once opened, so he was somewhat reluctant to look at it.

"Is there a lot of work this week?"

"Not much," Ms. Anna said with a smile.

Link flipped open the folder with his pen and glanced inside. It was packed with a sheet of paper that resembled the school timetable from his elementary school days, but the content was clearly fuller than any timetable.

First off, last week "The fighter" broke through 2 million in sales in the United States, achieving Double Platinum status, and the American Recording Association would be holding a small ceremony on Monday to certify the record, which he had to attend in person.

On Friday, the company would host a cocktail party to celebrate his album going Double Platinum, an event he could not miss.

"Deep Sea Quest 2" was officially releasing on Thursday, and he needed to attend several premiere ceremonies, as per the contract he had signed with the producers, which he couldn't get out of.

However, because he was now highly famous, the movie's distribution company hoped he would participate in more promotions, so they agreed to pay him no less than $200,000 per appearance.

On Monday, he had to go to New York University to report and discuss participating in the World University Games.

On Tuesday and Friday, there were two advertising shoots.

On Wednesday, there were two media interview events.

On Saturday, Lady Gaga had invited him for lunch to talk about music, and Dino had invited him to watch a boxing match.

On Sunday, he had also arranged to talk about a script with director Woody Allen, and Leonardo had asked him out for bowling.

Aside from these ad hoc work commitments, he also had several ongoing engagements, such as practicing boxing every day, coming to the studio to rehearse songs for his second album, practicing MJ's songs, and potentially being called on-site for rehearsals.

Link thought this folder was far more terrifying than Pandora's box; at a glance, there was no rest time at all for the whole week.

"You call this 'not much'?"

Link asked, frowning.

Anna chuckled, "I've seen Ms. Ivanka's schedule, it's twice as full as this."

"She's a workaholic, I'm not," Link retorted.

He took the other folders and flipped through them. Aside from two contracts that needed signing, the rest were script invitations.

The first one was for "Twilight 2," where the producers invited him to audition for the fourth male role, a vampire, with a pay not less than a million.

The second was for "Underground Boxer," inviting him to audition for the lead role with a salary offer of a million.

The third script, "Blood and Bone," was also a boxing movie, inviting him to audition for the second male lead, with a pay not less than half a million.

Link quickly scanned the opportunities and said, "Anna, no more boxing movies in the future. I've already done one boxing movie, and continuing with such roles lacks freshness and might create a typecast impression in the audience's mind, which isn't good for long-term development. The first script, I'll take a look and then decide."

The "Twilight" series was extremely popular in the United States, and its film adaptation was a huge hit, turning Kristen and the other two leads into young idols with just one movie.

Playing a role in such a film could boost popularity, but considering his current celebrity status in the entertainment industry, the fame gain from such a supporting role was minimal and not very beneficial.

So such roles were optional and dependent solely on whether he had the time.

"Okay!"

Ms. Anna nodded her head, picked up the files, and left the office.

Link shook his head and continued working.